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ARTHUR'S
PASS - A WARM WELCOME IN THE HEART OF THE SOUTHERN ALPS
 Wilderness
Lodge Arthurs Pass is nestled
in mountain beech forest, midway between Greymouth and
Christchurch. Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass offers comfort
and warm hospitality in a spectacular mountain setting.
Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass has 24 Lodge rooms, an intimate restaurant, lounge,
library and theatre for evening nature talks. Discover wild
nature in the New Zealand mountains and experience life on
our 3,000 hectare nature reserve / high country merino sheep
station. Walk from your room into a natural paradise of
beech forest, tussock clearings, moss-lined streams and
lakes on a network of nature walks. The highlight of the
Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass is a daily program of nature
discovery activities. Our Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass
naturalist guides will help you to explore nature and learn
about high country life.
All Wilderness Lodge Arthurs
Pass Lodge rooms have private bathrooms and sun and superb
alpine views.
Cora Lynn
lounge
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At Wilderness Lodge Arthurs
Pass can enjoy privacy and seclusion or you can join with
other guests and our guides to enjoy our nature tours and
farm activities. Around the log fire you will make new
friends and learn about New Zealand and its people as you
plan your next day's adventures.
You will also learn more
about this special place the first Maori visitors called "Te
Ko Awa a Aniwaniwa - Valley of the Mother of the Rainbows."
At Wilderness Lodge Arthurs
Pass we are working to protect the
special plants, forests and wildlife found on our high
country station and surrounding lands in partnership with
the Department of Conservation. For several years we have been
fostering rare mistletoes, bellbirds, parakeets and kea in
the forest around the Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass. We have discovered and
protected endangered plants in thorn forest near the Lodge.
We are proud that it has been possible to protect nature and
nearby run a successful and profitable merino wool farming
program. Our farm management program involves building
soil fertility, establishing high quality pastures and
breeding a quality flock of Merino sheep with our superfine
wool exported to Italian fashion houses. Wilderness Lodge
Arthurs Pass is a wholly
New Zealand owned and operated tourist venture. The McSweeney and Jarman families who own
Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass, trace their
New Zealand farming ancestry back to 1860.
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ARTHUR'S
PASS WILDERNESS LODGE - SUPERB FOOD, WINE AND COMFORT
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Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass captures the grandeur
of the Southern Alps from a warm site nestled into the
natural landscape. West Coast Wilderness Architect
Gary Hopkinson built with stone, wooden beams,
corrugated iron; materials widely used since the
earliest high country settlement of the 1860s. From
the highway the drive to Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass crosses the farm,
past the shearing shed then enters the beech forest.
It crosses Te Iringa Stream and winds to the car park.
A moss-lined forest path then leads to the Lodge.
On
Christmas Day 2004 Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass opened 4 magnificent new Alpine
Lodges. These are large and stylish. All have alpine
views and are nestled into the sandstone rocks and
mountain beech forest so outside your windows, native
birds surround you. They have Spa Baths with views,
their own lounges and gas log fires. The Alpine Lodges
feature rock, natural woods and earth-tone
furnishings. They are more expensive than our Mountain
View rooms but have created a Luxury Lodge product in
a wilderness setting. They are ideal for those who
want to treat themselves to a private retreat for
their anniversary, honeymoon or a long stay holiday
with us.
 From
Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass can enjoy mountain views stretching 60 kilometres
from the Binser Range (1860 metres) down across the
great sweep of the Waimakariri River to Mt Rolleston
(2275 metres), the highest mountain towering above
Arthur's Pass township. These mountains provide the
backdrop to the superb food of our Mt Rolleston
restaurant where you can enjoy the best of New
Zealand's fish, meats, fruit and vegetables. You can
join other guests from around the world or, if you
prefer, dine alone.
The
David McLeod Library at Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass
is a quiet place to relax amongst a collection of high
country and nature books. David McLeod owned this
sheep station from 1930 to 1978 and made this station
and the South Island high country famous in his series
of delightful high country books.
We are actively
involved in protecting New Zealand's natural and
cultural heritage. We are members of the NZ Nature
Network and the Forest and Bird Society. |
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4 new Alpine Lodge Rooms at
Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass
Located in a secluded clearing these larger, luxurious
rooms have privacy, super-King beds, spa bath, fire and
stunning mountain views
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ARTHUR'S
PASS WILDERNESS LODGE - WILDERNESS DISCOVERY... AND HIGH COUNTRY ADVENTURES
Kea parrots
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Wilderness Lodge Arthurs
Pass is a paradise for nature lovers and for a relaxing
retreat away from the pressures of the modern world. On
arrival we give you maps and information on our walk
network, forest and tussock nature trails. Walk from your
room into the wilderness or explore further afield in
Arthurs Pass National Park, Craigieburn Forest Park and Torlesse Conservation Park.
WALKS
NETWORK
Wilderness Lodge
Arthurs Pass walk's network covers 30km (20 miles) and provides
a fascinating introduction to the mountains. These include:
Walk Network
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- Rainbow Valley
Nature Walk is an easy 1 hour
self-guided trail through beech forest and tussock
clearings with great views
- Broad Stream Walk
- a 2 hour moderate fitness walk into a lovely beech
forested valley with cascades, pools and lovely picnic
areas
- McKay Moa Forest
and Wild Boar Hill - an easy 2
hour walk explores wild forest and shrubland filled with
rare plants with sweeping views of the valley
- Waimakariri
Valley Walk is a longer (3 hour)
but flat walk in the open Waimakariri Valley beneath
ancient thornforest and alongside wetlands rich in
birdlife
- Mt. Bruce and
Harper Saddle are longer (4
hour) harder mountain trips ideal for the enthusiast
DAILY
COMPLIMENTARY SHORT GUIDED NATURE TRIPS
Blade
shearing
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Every day, our Wilderness
Lodge Arthurs Pass naturalist
guides led by Gerry McSweeney offer two guided activities
each about an hour long, included in the Lodge tariff. You
can learn about beech forests, New Zealand's smallest bird,
the rifleman, discover strange thorn forests and look for
the world's smartest animal, the kea parrot. We also
introduce you to the Southern Cross and night sky and the
history of our mountains. Meet our Merino sheep, help shear
a sheep and see the sheep dogs working with our farm manager
Andy Bitmead and Gerry McSweeney.
Upper Otira
picnic
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LONGER OPTIONAL GUIDED ADVENTURE TRIPS
Guided trips from
Wilderness Lodge Arthurs Pass introduce you to the wild heart of the Southern
Alps. There is a small charge for these trips from which covers your guide, refreshments,
Conservation Department guiding license fee and equipment. A
minimum of 2 person is required for these to depart and they
can be booked on arrival. On safe, well planned adventures
you will get close to wildlife, learn about mountain ecology
and enjoy friendly company.
Southern Alps Alpine
Tarn Historic Walk - Traverses
moss forest, giant red tussocks, alpine wetlands and lakes
to an historic high musterer's hut dating back to our farm's
early days. This trip requires
moderate fitness.
Upper Otira Alpine
Flowers and Glacier Discovery -
Our most popular fine weather trip climbs high into the
glacier basin beneath Mt. Rolleston. Superb alpine flowers,
cascades, a mountain picnic , kea parrots and an ice cave
are the highlights. Good fitness required.
Waimakariri
canoeing
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Torless Tussocklands
Traverse - Drive east from the
Lodge and climb to a mountain ridge covered in alpine
flowers. Traverse the ridge with grand mountain views. Lunch
in a forest clearing then descend to Lake Lyndon. We canoe
on the trip home. Moderate fitness trip.
Challenging Canoeing
in the High Country - Experience
the vast braided rivers and high country lakes around the
Lodge with our guides in our safe stable Minnow canoes. This
is a wet adventure with wetsuits, training and attentive
guides.
Limestone Caves,
Rare Plants, Desert Landscapes - A
guided tour/walk into Canterbury's driest landscapes, home
to the region's rarest alpine plants. This includes an
exciting canoe trip and is suitable for all ages.
Castle Hill
limestone
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West Coast
Rainforest and Lake Canoeing -
Experience the luxuriant West Coast rainforest. Canoe across
a lovely lowland lake with floating forest to forested
islands and lunch on a white stone beach. Visit historic
buildings that date from the stagecoach era. Easy trip.
Trout Fishing,
Skiing and Mountaineering - Trout
fishing guides offer excellent high country fishing November
to April by prior arrangement. There are 5 skifields close
to the Lodge with skiing June to October. All year round
there is tramping and mountaineering close to the Lodge.
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ARTHUR'S PASS
WILDERNESS LODGE -
SPECIAL ACTIVITIES FOR ALL LODGE GUESTS
SAMPLE PROGRAMME ONLY. We change this programme
every three days and fit around the weather and
guests' interests. If you stay a week there will
always be new and different activities offered.
Our range of
complimentary and longer optional guided
activities are designed to introduce you to the
natural history of the Southern Alps and Arthur's
Pass region and also the rich cultural traditions
of a high country sheep station. Walks all depart
from reception, where you can also book for longer
trips and order your lunches.
PLEASE
NOTE: To allow time to
organise guides and transport could you please
book for longer trips the night before.
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FRIDAY 23 March
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7.30 - 8.30 am
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High Country Sheep Station
Discovery Tour Join
our Cora Lynn Station Manager Andy, to help
muster sheep with Border Collie sheepdogs. We
will teach you how to blade shear a woolly
sheep in our shearing shed and learn about
different types of super-fine merino wool and
feed our tame rams. A good chance to explore a
large farm and learn about High Country life.
All Lodge Guests welcome. |
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10 am - 3 pm
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Limestone Castles, Easy
Canoeing, Rare Plants and Desert Landscapes -
A guided high country discovery of the dry
lands east of the Lodge.
Journey in our minibus to the
driest landscapes of the high country shaped
by glaciers and water into amazing limestone
overhangs, outcrops, caves and streams
inhabited by some of New Zealand's rarest
plants. We travel down valley and walk up a
gentle hill on Cora Lynn station for grand
mountain views. We visit the Craigieburn
Forest Park for a forest walk and for lunch
and continue east to Cave stream and Castle
hill where we explore an area of great
significance to the early Maori and the site
of the earliest European settlement of the
upper Waimakariri. We will walk for 1 - 2
hours amongst amazing shaped limestone. We
then explore in our safe, stable canoes lovely
Lake Pearson to look for Crested Grebe, Scaup,
Paradise Ducks and other wetland birds.
Walk Standard: Easy Walking and 40 km
driving each way Time: 5 hours $88
per person (Minimum 4 persons) $130 per
person (Minimum 2 persons). Charge covers:
Guide, conservation licence, all equipment,
morning tea. You can also order lunch at
Reception. |
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3.30 - 6 pm |
Lake Pearson Special Canoe Trip
An optional extra afternoon trip 18 km away at
the Eastern end of the Lodge Farm. We will
look for rare Crested Grebes and other
waterbirds and you can swim if you want. Our
safe, stable Minnow canoes are suitable for
beginners and training will be given. All
Lodge Guests are welcome. Maximum 11
persons. Minimum 4 persons $35 per
person Children half price. Charge covers
guide, equipment, transport, and refreshments.
Please book at Reception. |
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9 pm
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High Country Heritage Slide
Talk. A special
slide talk in the Conference Room upstairs
about Alpine Plants, Kea and New Zealand's
high country heritage as well as the origins
of the Wilderness Lodge. All guests welcome.
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SATURDAY 24 March
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10 am - 4 pm
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Upper Otira Alpine Flowers and
Glacier Exploration.
This is the finest summer walk
in this region. We drive to the summit of
Arthur's Pass then discover subalpine flowers,
insect eating plants, and giant daisies as we
walk to the Otira Cascades for morning tea. We
climb above the cascades into an incredible
garden of mountain flowers, giant buttercups,
edelweiss, native carrots and foxgloves. We
reach our lunch destination, a huge ice cave
underneath the Otira Glacier and climb inside
the glacier and then enjoy a picnic lunch
before returning to the Lodge. Walk
Standard: Moderate-Hard Walk Distance:
10 km Time: 6 hours $98 per person
(Minimum 4 persons) $170 per person
(Minimum 2 persons) Children half price.
Charge covers: Guide, morning tea, and
conservation licence. You should also order
lunch at Reception. |
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4.30 - 6 pm
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McKay Moa Forest Discovery
A special trip across the Broad Stream
footbridge to see rare riverbed plants,
'inside-out' shrubs that have evolved to
resist browsing by giant Moa birds, now
extinct. This is a high valley, home to many
wild pigs. There are superb views of the Upper
Waimakariri Valley, the Lodge and the rivers,
so take your camera. A moderate level of
fitness required. All Lodge Guests welcome.
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9.30 pm
(if fine) |
The Night Sky and Southern
Cross Walk An easy
walk after dinner to see the beautiful
southern night sky. We will look for planets
and use our telescope to look at the craters
of the moon if it is out. All Lodge Guests
welcome. |
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SUNDAY 25 March
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7.30 - 8.30 am |
High Country Sheep Station
Discovery Tour Join
our Cora Lynn Station Manager Andy, to help
muster sheep with Border Collie sheepdogs. We
will teach you how to blade shear a woolly
sheep in our shearing shed and learn about
different types of super-fine merino wool and
feed our tame rams. A good chance to explore a
large farm and learn about High Country life.
All Lodge Guests welcome. |
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10 am - 4 pm
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West Coast Rainforest and Lake
Canoeing We drive
over Arthur's Pass, down the magnificent Otira
Gorge and explore rimu rainforest at Kelly's
Creek to discover orchids, tree ferns, giant
fuschia, pigeon and tui. We continue on to
lovely Lake Poerua and canoe across the lake
past a floating forest of ancient kahikatea
trees to forested granite islands for lunch, a
swim and a fish (if you want). We are
surrounded by a jungle of pristine rainforest.
We return to the Wilderness Lodge via an
historic hotel that dates from the stage coach
days and visit lovely Wesley Falls.
Activity Standard: Easy - Moderate
Walk/canoe Distance: 5 km Time: 6
hours $98 per person (Minimum 4
persons) $170 per person (Minimum 2
persons) Children under 13 half price. Charge
covers: Guide, conservation licence, all
equipment, morning tea. You can also order
lunch at Reception. Courtesy transport
provided. |
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4.30 - 6 pm
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Birds and Special Plants of the
Mountain Beech Forest
Explore the Forests that surround the
Wilderness Lodge with our naturalist guides on
an easy walk with great views. Look for
rifleman, New Zealand's smallest bird,
bellbird, falcon, tomtit and creeper. Search
for beech seedlings and rare mistletoe and
discover the beech forest invading the
surrounding shrublands and learn about Maori
and European sheep farmers who pioneered this
area. This is a great walk to become familiar
with the Waimakariri Valley. All Lodge Guests
welcome. |
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Nearest
Town/Location:
Arthurs
Pass, Christchurch and Hokitika.
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